Vatican removes 'migrants' priest'

The Vatican on Wednesday removed a controversial priest who has gained fame and criticism for welcoming migrants, many of them clandestine. The Holy See confirmed the removal of Father Massimo Biancalani, renowned for his massive reception of immigrants in the rectory and even in church, from pastoral service in the parishes of Santa Maria Maggiore a Vicofaro and San Niccolò a Ramini in Pistoia. The Dicastery for the Clergy, as reported by La Nazione, rejected the priest's appeal against the measure initiated by the former bishop of Pistoia and Pescia, Monsignor Fausto Tardelli, thus reaching the final stage of the canonical process. The Vatican decision marks a definitive end to a matter that has lasted over a decade. Since 2015, the parish of Vicofaro had become a symbol of the national